I spend the afternoon in cars
I sit in traffic jams for hours
don’t push me, I am not OK

the sky is blue most every day
the lemons grow like tumors they
are tiny suns infused with sour

lonely as a cloud
in the Golden State
“The coldest winter that I ever saw
Was the summer that I spent…”

the only substance is the fog
and it hides all that has gone wrong
can’t see a thing inside the maze

there is a bridge adored and famed
the Golden spine of engineering
whose back is heavy with my weight

lonely as a cloud
in the Golden State
“The coldest winter that I ever saw
Was the summer that I spent…”

be still this old heart
be still this old skin
drink your last drink
sin your last sin
sing your last song
about the beginning
sing it out loud
so the people can hear
let’s go!

be still this sad day
be still this sad year
hope your last hope
fear you last fear
your not the only one (4x)
let’s go!

my falling shape will draw a line
between the blue of sea and sky
I’m not a bird, I’m not a plane

I took a taxi to the gate
I will not go to school again
four seconds was the longest wait (4x)
four seconds was the longest




Lyrics submitted by The Writing Writer

Track duration: 04:25


Jumpers song meanings
Add your thoughts

28 Comments

sort form View by:
  • 0
    General Comment:My favourite song about suicide...flawless. This song retain an excellent sound and interesting lyrics throughout and never steers towards too much melodrama like so many emo bands do
    Flag River Wolfon June 30, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I just "got" this song. It's incredibly poignant.
    I just don't really like the "be still this old heart" part much. Amazing chorus though.
    Flag xroseparadeon September 25, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Total reference of the suicides of SF, especially the part where they say "I will not go to school again".

    "Be still this old heart; Be still this old Skin".

    Basically the aftermath of jumping, you'll be dead, your heart will stop beating.

    "there is a bridge adored and famed
    the Golden spine of engineering
    whose back is heavy with my weight"

    Standing on the golden gate bridge, "whose back is heavy with my weight" could either refer to them actually standing on the bridge, or it could refer to the weight of their feelings.

    "the only substance is the fog
    and it hides all that has gone wrong
    can’t see a thing inside the maze"

    Self explanatory :P sometimes the fog in SF can be so thick that you can't see anything, "it hides all that has gone wrong", nobody actually knows of the terrible things that other people have done. Fog could also be a reference to someones mask, if you keep your guard up, if you keep your mask on no one will know your darkest secrets.


    "the sky is blue most every day
    the lemons grow like tumors they
    are tiny suns infused with sour"

    My favorite part of the song, every day will seem like a happy day to most people. The lemons probably refer to the ones whose days start out great but end up terrible.

    I'm probably wrong, mainly because I'm half asleep but thats not really a good defense :P
    Flag Schlafon February 20, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Whoa what an amazing song!
    well yes a song about a girl/boy jumping off a bridge maybe because of somthing school related but im only guessing what a deep beautifull song!
    Flag pimpingpastaon January 09, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Whoa what an amazing song!
    well yes a song about a girl/boy jumping off a bridge maybe because of somthing school related but im only guessing what a deep beautifull song!
    Flag pimpingpastaon January 09, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Pretty sure bugoff is kidding. This song is definitely about... well, what everyone else said--a girl jumping and killing herself. Brilliant song, everything from the awesome guitar licks to the awesome Corin/Carrie harmonizing, to the best drummer ever, to the insane lyrics. I only wish I didn't get into them so late... I hope they get back together. One of my favorite bands.
    Flag mfactoron December 10, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Definitely about suicide of the Golden Gate. Have you been to SF? It's fitting for someone to say, "the only substance is the fog/and it hides all that has gone wrong." Its a well-known place for self-harm.

    However, despite the serious and depressing nature of the song, fakeorforced comment cracked me up.
    Flag susiestentoron October 10, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:It also says on the Wikipedia page for the Golden Gate Bridge that the song is linked to the bridge.

    "The Golden Gate Suicides are the topic of a song by indie rock trio Sleater-Kinney. The song is called "Jumpers," and it appears on the album The Woods."
    [ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… ]
    Flag piankon September 11, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:P.S. the article of the New Yorker entitled "Jumpers" may have something to do with it... thank u for that link, piank.
    Flag PeachFanon August 26, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:well S-K sings about serious things. in the music video, its about a woman who wants to escape the boring rutine life style of working in a office where no one really cares about her and their business is full of lies. so she creates a set of wings to escape and enter a more beautiful world that is outside the corporation.

    So i totally agree with the trials of a rough life and everything getting even harder to the point where she just cant take it anymore. i agree with the suicide idea. why would they put so much angst and soul into this song... about bungee jumping...
    Flag PeachFanon August 26, 2007   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

Back to top
explain